PEORIA, Ariz. — Jeremiah Estrada did not want to leave the rotation. He did not want to mothball his curveball and change-up. He didn’t agree with a lot of the Cubs’ plans for his developmental path, so much so that he welcomed the split when that organization designated him for assignment on his 25th birthday.
So yeah. Maybe you could say that Estrada — who glared at the Cubs brass at Petco Park after a particularly dominant showing against his former team last April — has pitched with a chip on his shoulder.
But time in his new home with the Padres, in the new home he purchased with his fiancée and time away from his busiest season yet have had a revealing effect on the 27-year-old Estrada as he settles in for his third season in the Padres’ bullpen.
“I think it’s more that there’s a hand on my shoulder now,” Estrada said. “That’s Christ telling me there’s a better way.”
Peoria, AZ – February 18: Jeremiah Estrada #56 of the San Diego Padres poses for a portrait on February 18, 2026 in Peoria, Arizona. (K.C. Alfred / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
Estrada was speaking while relaxing at a table on the pitcher’s side of the big-league clubhouse at the Peoria Sports Complex. He has breakfast there most mornings as fellow hurlers cycle through with their meals and crossword puzzles amid their morning routines. Estrada is as present in those conversations as he is any time he climbs a mound. Yet the pull back to life he’s building back home is real in the many quiet moments there are throughout spring training.
His smile widens.
Estrada finally moved into the home he purchased over the summer in La Quinta. He taught his dogs to swim in his new pool. He lost 24 pounds, from 230 to 206, using workouts that included pickleball, golf, walking and even plyo balls off the wall with his girlfriend. The couple leaned into their faith in new and profound ways.
In February, Estrada asked Jianna Guerrero to marry him. They’re planning a 2027 wedding.
Estrada’s 97.9 mph four-seamer is faster than 94% of the league, but he’s in no rush to get to what comes next. He speaks of children in their future, but he’s also relishing the here and now like never before.
“I treated this offseason,” Estrada said, “as understanding what’s more important.”
Which is why Estrada didn’t stress once he realized he was not going to be able to track down the documentation needed to join Team Mexico for the World Baseball Classic.
It would have been an honor, sure, but Estrada was already coming off a heavy workload.
His 108 strikeouts last year led all relievers. His 202 punchouts since becoming a full-time reliever with the Padres in 2024 are more than everyone but teammate Mason Miller (208), Bryan Abreu (208) and Cade Smith (207).
Only three relievers last year logged more than Estrada’s career-high 77 appearances, and only four relievers had more holds than Estrada’s 30. He made two more appearances in the NL Wild Card Series, the last an emergency entrance as he tried to bail Yu Darvish out of a dicey second inning.
Estrada walked in one of the runners he inherited but kept the game close, pitching two frames before handing the ball to Michael King in the fourth inning.
The next time Estrada picked up a ball was in early December.
“We could go off a spreadsheet like they want us to do, but at the end of the day, nobody’s going to know my body better,” Estrada said before beginning to rub his right shoulder. “I know what this felt like, and I for sure know what it felt like after that last game.”
Jeremiah Estrada #56 of the San Diego Padres signs autographs for fans before their spring training game against the White Sox at Camelback Ranch on Tuesday, March 3, 2026 in Phoenix, Ariz. (Meg McLaughlin / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
Estrada began throwing on his timeline. A focus once he took a look at his repertoire, pitching coach Ruben Niebla said, was the consistency of a splitter that eluded him for entire games at times.
Maybe that’s why Estrada’s home run rate ballooned from 0.6 per nine innings to 1.5. Maybe that’s why his ERA ticked upward from 2.95 to 3.45. Or maybe it was just the Dodgers and Teoscar Hernandez who just had his number. Only Andy Pages has more plate appearances against Estrada than Hernandez and Hernandez took him deep twice in a span of two months after Estrada had struck him out in two appearances over the previous years.
Take away Estrada’s struggles against the Dodgers last year (13 runs in 6 ⅓ innings) and his 3.45 ERA drops to 2.03, lower than all but 10 relievers in the game.
“At some point, if you keep slapping someone in the face, they are going to get out of the way,” Estrada said. “He’s going to figure it out.”
That’s about as much thought as Estrada is willing to entertain about last year’s struggles against the Dodgers. They happened. Now he’s moving forward.
Jeremiah Estrada #56 of the San Diego Padres pitches during spring training workouts at the Peoria Sports Complex on Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2026 in Peoria, Ariz.(Meg McLaughlin / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
With a good grip again on his splitter, his “chitter,” Estrada has struck out 10 over 6 ⅔ innings so far this spring, scattering one hit and six walks.
“He went into the offseason in a much better spot with that pitch,” Niebla said. “We’ve seen him in spring training already, like he can just lean on it and throw it three times in a row and it’s going to be competitive and that’s a good step forward for him.”
But one step at a time.
Yes, Estrada was the only member of the Padres’ “Four Horsemen” who did not make the All-Star Game last year, but he was happy to celebrate his teammates. He was happy to watch his Padres “brothers” live their best lives in the World Baseball Classic. He’ll pitch when he’s asked like he always has as part of the Padres’ victory formation. He’s a year closer to arbitration eligibility and ultimately the opportunity to earn life-changing money for himself, his fiancée and a very tight inner circle back home in the Inland Empire.
But a reliever with one of the fastest four-seamers in the game is in no hurry. He’s happy to let good things come in due time.
“I’m grateful for who I am,” Estrada said. “I am where my feet are at.”